Psychosocial Aspects of the Development of Gifted Underachievers: Review and Implications

Gifted underachievers are children who display a discrepancy between expected high achievement and actual performance. Focussing on gifted children with a long‐standing pattern of underachievement not explicable in terms of learning disability, this paper adopts a developmental perspective to the problem of gifted underachievement. Literature is reviewed on the affective development of gifted underachievers and the environmental factors which may foster or diminish success in school. It is argued that cognitive and affective variables do not operate independently and should not be considered in isolation from the environmental context of development. Further, gifted underachievers are not a homogeneous group, and some influences on achievement are situation‐specific and highly variable. Finally, implications for intervention are discussed in light of the need to view children's development not as a dichotomy of cognitive and affective change but holistically, as a complex interaction of child and environment.     

Understanding Heterogeneity in the Impact of Public Preschool Programs

We examine the North Carolina Pre-K (NC Pre-K) program to test the hypothesis that observed variation in effects resulting from exposure to the program can be attributed to interactions with other environmental factors that occur before, during, or after the pre-k year. We examine student outcomes in 5th grade and test interaction effects between NC's level of investment in public pre-k and moderating factors. Our main sample includes the population of children born in North Carolina between 1987 and 2005 who later attended a public school in that state, had valid achievement data in 5th grade, and could be matched by administrative record review (n = 1,207,576; 58% White non-Hispanic, 29% Black non-Hispanic, 7% Hispanic, 6% multiracial and Other race/ethnicity). Analyses were based on a natural experiment leveraging variation in county-level funding for NC Pre-K across NC counties during each of the years the state scaled up the program. Exposure to NC Pre-K funding was defined as the per-4-year-old-child state allocation of funds to a county in a year. Regression models included child-level and county-level covariates and county and year fixed effects. Estimates indicate that a child's exposure to higher NC Pre-K funding was positively associated with that child's academic achievement 6 years later. We found no effect on special education placement or grade retention. NC Pre-K funding effects on achievement were positive for all subgroups tested, and statistically significant for most. However, they were larger for children exposed to more disadvantaged environments either before or after the pre-k experience, consistent with a compensatory model where pre-k provides a buffer against the adverse effects of prior negative environmental experiences and protection against the effects of future adverse experiences. In addition, the effect of NC Pre-K funding on achievement remained positive across most environments, supporting an additive effects model. In contrast, few findings supported a dynamic complementarity model. Instrumental variables analyses incorporating a child's NC Pre-K enrollment status indicate that program attendance increased average 5th grade achievement by approximately 20% of a standard deviation, and impacts were largest for children who were Hispanic or whose mothers had less than a high school education. Implications for the future of pre-k scale-up and developmental theory are discussed.     

Self-concepts,academic achievement,and teacher's rating

One hundred ninety-eight pupils from fourth, fifth, and sixth grades were studied to determine the relationship between children's self-concept, academic achievement, and teacher's rating of children's self-concept. The differences between grade levels, sex, and ethnic group membership were tested by analysis of variance. Significant correlations were found between child's self-concept and teacher's rating of child's self-concept, and between teacher's rating of child's self-concept and child's academic achievement. Significant ethnic group differences were found in self-concept, academic achievement, and teacher's rating of self-concept in this study, with interethnic groups showing the higher scores.     

Gifted underachievement within a self-regulated learning framework: Proposing a task-dependent model to guide early identification and intervention

Current theoretical and operational definitions of underachievement require that students show sustained suppressed academic achievement. Yet, early detection may allow for effective intervention before underachievement becomes a chronic issue. While existing identification procedures were not designed to detect underachievement before low academic performance occurs, the integration of self-regulated learning (SRL) into these practices may promote earlier identification and intervention. This conceptual paper (a) anchors gifted underachievement within Zimmerman's SRL model, (b) examines existing gifted literature investigating SRL components to demonstrate the benefits of applying an SRL model, and (c) proposes a comprehensive measurement and intervention technique to capture important motivational variables at the task level. By measuring SRL processes and underachievement at a task-specific level, we can target interventions to specific needs, address underachievement before it becomes a persistent problem, and help learners reach their academic potential.     

Factors influencing the decision to administer psychoeducational tests

Ninety-nine NASP members participated in a study designed to investigate bias in the early stages of the referral process (i.e., in the decision to administer psychological tests). Each school psychologist received one of eight case studies, which described a child referred for academic learning problems. The case studies included typical referral information and varied student race (Black, White), socioeconomic status (higher, lower), and group achievement test scores (average, below average). The decision to administer individual psychoeducational tests was not influenced by the student's race or socioeconomic status. School psychologists were influenced by the group achievement test data. Students who showed lower achievement test results were more likely to be recommended for testing than were those who showed average performance levels. Thus, these school psychologists were not biased by knowledge of a child's race or socioeconomic status, but were influenced by instructionally relevant data (i.e., achievement test scores). In addition, when objective test data indicated average achievement levels, the psychologists did not generally recommend subsequent individual psychoeducational testing. The findings suggested that, under certain conditions, testing may not automatically follow receipt of a referral.     

Parental Perceptions of the Use of Internal Sources of Information About Children's Development

This exploratory study examined parental perceptions of the information sources parents use when wanting or needing information about their three-year-old child's motor, social, and cognitive development. Specifically, this study compared parental perceptions of the use of internal information sources (i.e., parents' own intuitions about development, religious beliefs/teachings, and childhood experiences) to perceptions of the use of external information sources (i.e., books, magazines, counselors, etc.). Further, this study examined differences in parental perceptions of use of internal information sources by parent and child gender, and by developmental domain (i.e., information about a child's motor, social, and cognitive development). Sixty mothers and 60 fathers of a three-year-old child completed an information use structured interview. Findings revealed that almost half of the parents reported referring to their own intuitions, religious beliefs/teachings, and/or childhood experiences as sources of information about their child's development. Parents perceived the internal information sources as being used significantly more frequently and as significantly more useful for information about their child's social development than for information about their child's motor and cognitive development.     

Argumentation,Dialogue Theory,and Probability Modeling: Alternative Frameworks for Argumentation Research in Education

Toulmin's model of argumentation, developed in 1958, has guided much argumentation research in education. However, argumentation theory in philosophy and cognitive science has advanced considerably since 1958. There are currently several alternative frameworks of argumentation that can be useful for both research and practice in education. These frameworks include Walton's dialogue theory and Bayesian models of everyday arguments. This article reviews and evaluates these frameworks and shows how each can be applied instructionally (e.g., through the teaching of critical questions or probability modeling) and, from a research standpoint, in evaluating the content and quality of informal arguments. It is concluded that attention to these and other contemporary argumentation frameworks can help move the study of argumentation in education forward.     

Understanding Underachievement: an investigation into the differential attainment of secondary school pupils

This article considers the notion of ‘underachievement’ as it is applied to pupil performance in school. It argues that rather than being a straightforward concept, underachievement is one where little consensus exists over its definition and measurement. Previous work on underachievement has tended to cluster around two manifestations of the issue. On the one hand, there is the comparative notion of differential achievement—often specifically low achievement—as used in media commentaries and, on the other, there is its definition in psychological research as the discrepancy between an individual's performance on a test of mental ability a subsequent school examination. Using a stricter definition of underachievement that takes into account a range of background as well as academic variables when predicting examination performance, this paper describes the construction of a model for predicting individual performance in future Key Stage 3 examinations. Individuals whose examination performance was then significantly lower than expected were termed underachievers. The composition of this group was examined in light of existing ‘moral panics’ about underachieving working-class boys.     

Girls and Women,Sport, and Self-Confidence

This article explores research examining girls' and women's self-confidence in sport and physical activity. The article begins by addressing how self-confidence has been conceptualized and how researchers have measured it. A theoretical groundwork is presented by comparing three models that link confidence to achievement: Bandura's theory of self-efficacy, Harter's competence motivation theory, and Eccles (Parsons) et al.'s expectancy-value model. Next, research examining variables that have been hypothesized to influence female self-confidence, as well as a discussion of gender differences, is presented. Finally, enhancement strategies and future research directions are offered. It is suggested that researchers examine the impact of specific socializing influences when studying girls' and women's self-confidence and also that they undertake more model testing instead of examining variables in isolation.     

Parental Nurturance Promotes Reading Acquisition in Low Socioeconomic Status Children

Research Findings: Children require cognitive skills (e.g., phoneme awareness, verbal intelligence) and environmental resources (e.g., stimulation, print exposure) to acquire reading. This investigation examined the additional contribution of parental nurturance to literacy development during the transition from preschool to elementary school. Participants were 77 children attending Head Start, their primary caregivers, and their teachers. A variety of methods were used to measure nurturance (e.g., self-report, laboratory observation, home observation) and reading achievement (e.g., standardized testing and teacher report). Approximately 3½ years later, 52 families and 39 teachers were available for repeat assessments of children's reading achievement. After controlling for the variance accounted for by prior reading ability, phonological awareness, verbal reasoning ability, and home academic stimulation, parental nurturance made a significant unique contribution to children's growth in reading achievement. Results supported the hypothesis that caregiver nurturance can be an important ingredient in the recipe for literacy.

Practice: The findings have important implications for the design of interventions for children with low reading achievement. By understanding the various ways in which parents foster reading, interventions can be developed to bolster parental nurturance and support the role of nurturance in promoting children's development in all areas, including intellectual and academic functioning.     

Episodic Memory: A Neglected Phenomenon in the Psychology of Education

Contemporary educational psychology has employed models of procedural and semantic (or declarative) memory, but generally it has ignored a third form of memory (i.e., episodic memory) thought by some (e.g., Tulving, 1983,1985) to be especially important for explications of human functioning. Tulving's (1983,1985) ternary theory of memory is presented, with emphasis given to the acquisition, representation, and expression of knowledge in episodic memory. I argue that studies of pupils' episodic memories, their characteristics, and their functions may enhance the power and relevance of educational psychology with respect to understanding how pupils learn from instruction in classroom contexts. A conceptual framework and possible strategies for the conduct of instructional research are described that consider pupils' episodic memories as important mediating variables in learning from teaching.     

Interest, motivation and learning: An educational-psychological perspective

Within the last few years, researchers have shown a renewed interest in “interest”. Especially in the field of educational psychology many studies have been conducted to analyze how learning and achievement are influenced by motivational and cognitive factors, which are connected with individual and/or situational interests. In this paper, results from empirical research will be presented besides theoretical considerations concerning the interest-construct. Interest has typically been studied as an independent variable. Dependent variables have been either some aspects of learning outcome (knowledge structure, academic achievement) or hypothetical mediators, which probably can be used to explain the interest effects (e.g., learning strategies, attention, emotional experiences). There is also a growing number of studies which try to explore the conditions of interest development within educational settings. Future lines of research will be discussed in light of the demands of educational theory and practice.     

Patterns of Teacher‐Student Interaction in Inclusive Elementary Classrooms and Correlates with Student Self-Concept

The efficacy of placing students with special needs in inclusive classrooms may depend in part on how instructional factors contribute to student outcomes. Differences in frequencies and levels of cognitive engagement of interactions among nine teachers in inclusive elementary classrooms were related to three other variables: teachers' ratings on the Pathognomonic-Interventionist (PATH/INT) Scale, students' designation either as exceptional or at-risk (EX/AR) or as typically achieving (TA), and students' scores on the Piers Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale. Teachers with PATH beliefs, who attribute learning difficulties to permanent characteristics of the student that are beyond the teacher's mandate, interacted infrequently with their EX/AR students at low levels of cognitive engagement. Teachers with INT beliefs, who see themselves as responsible for the achievement of all their students irrespective of their disabilities, interacted with all students more frequently, and at higher levels of cognitive engagement. In contrast to the PATH teachers, their EX/AR students received more instructional interactions than their TA students. As expected, the EX/AR students in all classrooms had lower Piers Harris Self-Concept Total Scale scores than typically achieving students. However, both TA and EX/AR students had lower Self-Concept Total Scale scores in the classrooms of teachers with PATH beliefs, compared to students in the classrooms of INT teachers. The relationship is discussed between teachers' beliefs, their different patterns of instructional interactions with students with and without disabilities in inclusive classrooms, and the possible impact of instructional interventions on students' self-concept.     

Expectancy-value appraisals and achievement emotions in an online learning environment: Within- and between-person relationships

Motivation and emotion are of critical importance for students' academic learning and achievement. Drawing on Eccles and Wigfield's situated expectancy-value theory and Pekrun's control-value theory, we examined to what extent specific expectancy-value appraisals related to studentsʼ achievement emotions. We collected intensive state data of N = 95 university students over one semester in an online learning environment. Students' appraisals were analyzed on different aggregation levels in a hierarchical design, which accounts for variability within learning situations and between students. Our results corroborated theoretical assumptions that expectancy-value appraisals are positively associated with positive emotions and negatively with negative emotions. However, we found that students experienced positive emotions in learning situations of high intrinsic and utility value, but not in situations of high attainment value. Examining appraisal combinations and discrete emotions, we found that particularly studentsʼ perceived costs moderated the relationship between expectancy and frustration and boredom on the situation level.     

The Relationship of Family Variables to Head Start Children's Preacademic Competence

This study was conducted with a sample of 93 Head Start children and their mothers. It examined the contribution of family variables (i.e., parenting style, home literacy activities, maternal school involvement, and maternal expectations) to children's preacademic competence as defined by four criteria: (a) performance on a standardized achievement battery; (b) teachers' ratings of children's cognitive competence; (c) children's self-ratings of competence; and (d) maternal reports of children's early school adjustment. In exploring these relationships the study controlled for the influence of variables (i.e., child and maternal cognitive variables, child sex, as well as risk due to daily stress) that have been suggested to influence directly, or indirectly, maternal involvement and child competence. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that educational expectations, home literacy variables, and school involvement were predictive of children's competence even after accounting for the effects of maternal education, child IQ, and daily stress. Specifically, maternal educational expectations were predictive of preacademic achievement and teacher-rated competence. Maternal engagement in educational activities at home was predictive of children's self-efficacy beliefs and school adjustment. Maternal school involvement was also predictive of school adjustment.     

Pascual‐Leone's Theory of Constructive Operators as an Explanatory Construct in Cognitive Development and Science Achievement

In order for a cognitive construct to be accepted as explanatory, it must specify target behaviours, posit antecendent variables, and procedures, whereby the antecedent variables can be measured independently of behavioural changes. It is hypothesised that Pascual‐Leone's Theory of Constructive Operators can serve as explanatory construct in cognitive development and science achievement, by postulating the following antecedent variables: Mental Capacity, Field Factor, and the Mobility‐Fixity Dimension. Empirical evidence in support of the three variables is presented. It is concluded that the antecedent variables based on the Theory of Constructive Operators not only serve as explanatory constructs in cognitive development, but also provide epistemological tools that can be manipulated and have important implications for educational practice.     

The role of temperament in children's affective and behavioral responses in achievement situations

Although students' affects and behaviors in achievement situations have been shown to be influenced by their previous learning experiences, less is known about how they relate to students' dispositional characteristics, such as temperament. This study examined to what extent children's temperament is related to their affective and behavioral responses in achievement situations. Teachers rated first-graders' (n = 153) temperamental characteristics in the Fall semester. Children's active task avoidance, anxiety, and helplessness were rated in test situations in the Fall and Spring semesters. The results showed that the more easily distracted the children were, the more task avoidance they showed, and the more their task avoidance increased during the first grade. Moreover, children's high level of inhibition was related to high levels of anxiety and helplessness. The findings suggest that characteristics that are related to students' behavioral regulation and inhibition are particularly important for their affective and behavioral responses in achievement situations.     

Father-child and mother-child speech: A perspective on parental roles

An analysis of the existing research on parents' speech to young children suggests that the differences between mothers' and fathers' speech appear especially in the nature of their vocabulary and in certain functional and conversational aspects of their speech when addressing their children. The findings suggest that the father is a more demanding or challenging conversational partner for the young child than the mother, who tends to be more sensitive to the child's abilities and requires less of the child as a conversational partner. We interpret these differences as reflecting parental roles which are in part different and complementary. The mother's specific role is to provide a feeling of security by avoiding situations where the child's established acquisitions would be challenged, while still stimulating the child. The father's specific roles is to prompt the child to attain higher levels of success, even if it means momentarily destabilizing the child. Literature on children's communicative behaviors with each parent was also examined. The sparse amount of research in this field reveals that children may communicate differently with mothers and fathers. The conclusions of this literature review are discussed in terms of different perspectives open for future research.     

Underachievement in the verbally gifted: Implications for pedagogy

An ecological-systems view is presented describing academic underachievement in highly verbal, gifted adolescents. The highly verbal are considered to be those children who show a precocious ability to comprehend, analyze, and synthesize written material, as well as an attitudinal predisposition toward less structured, more creative verbal tasks. Underachievement is discussed in terms of global versus analytic processing styles, intrinsic versus extrinsic motivation, verbal versus quantitative interests and abilities, and the concomitant achievement patterns. It is argued that a unique pattern of interests, motives, and cognitive styles results in a differential pattern of achievement for these youth. Underachievement is viewed as a mismatch between the school's curriculum and testing procedures and these children's unique needs and stylistic approaches toward learning. The implications for psychoeducational assessment, pedagogy, and counseling are discussed.